COURTESY OF MAINE AQUACULTURE INNOVATION CENTER
Whether you’re just thinking about starting your own aquaculture operation or if you’re an established business, the Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center (MAIC) has a suite of business support programs and tools to assist you. MAIC also works closely with Maine’s broader business support ecosystem to link aquaculturists to resources across the state. We encourage you to reach out and connect with us!
Business Incubators
MAIC co-manages incubation spaces with the University of Maine at two coastal locations: the Darling Marine Center in Walpole, ME and the Center for Cooperative Aquaculture Research in Franklin, ME. Working primarily with startup firms seeking land-based pilot-scale research and culture facilities, the business incubators provide tank space with flowing and recirculating fresh- and salt-water culture systems to test new culture methods or products. The incubators also provide office space, direct access to University researchers and student interns, business counselors, and access to workshops and entrepreneurship training programs. Additionally, MAIC works with other organizations to connect businesses to other wet labs and specialized infrastructure across Maine.
Funding Opportunities
MAIC supports new and existing aquaculture farms by providing opportunities for social, economic, and technological innovation in aquaculture spaces. MAIC has created funding opportunities for Maine aquaculture farmers to connect with farmers around the world and with members of their local communities, helping to inspire innovations across a wide range of practices and applications. The Business & Economic Research Program delivers customized market research to identify new target markets and support the development of new marketing strategies, helping aquaculture businesses expand access to local and regional markets. Community Engagement Grants are grants intended to provide financial support to farmers who are hosting community engagement events to build social license for their farms. The Farmer to Farmer Exchange Program provides funding for farmers to undertake technology and knowledge transfer by visiting other aquaculture operations elsewhere in the US or internationally. Lastly, Business Development Grants are intended to build upon the Business & Economic Research Program and the Farmer to Farmer Exchange Program by providing funding for businesses to further explore market research, the transfer and/or adoption of new technologies or practices into their business, or to trial innovative gear types or emerging aquaculture species.
Innovation Navigator
MAIC is collating the business support resources that exist for aquaculture businesses in Maine to help startups navigate Maine’s business innovation landscape. Whether you’re looking for physical space to prototype, grant opportunities, technical expertise, or business planning, use this tool to start your planning!
Sea Farmer Lending Library
MAIC’s sea farmer lending library enables aquaculturists to borrow scientific monitoring equipment to better understand environmental conditions on their farms. MAIC staff will help you identify the most appropriate piece of equipment based on your objectives and equipment availability and will work with you to deploy the equipment. Monitoring data collected during the deployment will be available to the user and MAIC.
Visit our website at https://maineaquaculture.org/business-support/ to learn more or reach out to Sydney Avena, Applied Research & Industry Partnerships Manager, at savena@maineaquaculture.org.